What is it about a carpet that inspires an exuberant ‘Wow!’? Is it the color? The design? The material? The construction? Maybe it is as former rug and carpet dealer Nedret Gürler once stated: ‘Color is like the appearance of an attractive person; it draws you in. Design is like their personality; it keeps your attention.’ Or perhaps it is as Michael Mandapati of Warp and Weft suggested in the RUG INSIDER Winter 2018 article ‘The Chairman’, when asked what makes a great carpet: ‘It’s everything.’

Attempts to quantify the so-called wow factor occur every time a designer or artisan creates a new rug design, or when a critical and curatorial eye passes judgment, yet try as one might, the formulas — if they exist at all — remain elusive. Partly due to the subjective nature of taste, partly due to perspective, each of the carpets presented has made someone gasp ‘Wow!’ So, in examining them as a whole, instead of considering ‘everything’ as a formula of success, consider ‘everything’ as the synergistic je ne sais quoi of personal attraction.

“There are three responses to a piece of design – yes, no, and WOW! Wow is the one to aim for.“ MILTON GLASER